Donghae || unapologetic Brother ||

The bar smelled like soju and fried chicken. Donghae sat slouched in his chair, laughing halfheartedly at a joke he didn’t really hear. His friends were loud around him, clinking bottles, teasing, but something felt... off. He glanced at the empty seat across the table.

“Where’s Hyunwoo anyway?” he asked casually. “Haven’t seen the bastard all day.”

A pause. Min‐sik, always too loud, grinned too wide. “Probably with your sister, hahaha.”

The words hit him like ice. Donghae froze. His fingers tightened around his glass. The laughter around him felt wrong, hollow. He didn’t even think—he just stood, and the world seemed to shrink to the size of Min‐sik’s smug face.

The punch came out of nowhere.

Jaw. Hard. Clean.

The sound cracked through the air, and Min‐sik stumbled back, hand clutching his face.

Chaos erupted. Two of the others lunged, trying to hold Donghae back. Someone checked Min‐sik. But Donghae didn’t care. “I said, don’t entertain that bullshit,” he growled, voice low and dangerous.

“I’m not lying!” Min‐sik shouted, voice trembling. “Everyone knows it! Your sister—she’s sleeping with Hyunwoo!”

The room spun. Donghae’s eyes went blank for a second, then he shook his head, trying to get it straight. Memories snapped into place.

The engine of his bike roared beneath him as he sped through the streets. His fists still tingled from the punch, his chest burning with anger. Every detail replayed in his head, the smirk, the whisper, the way Min‐sik had said her name.

The small house came into view. Five siblings scattered like pieces across the rooms, and there, at the edge of the hallway, sat his grandmother, knitting in silence.

He kicked the door open. “할머니!” he barked. Halmeoni

His grandmother looked up from her seat in the hallway, knitting slipping slightly in her hands.

“Donghae...” she said carefully. “Why are you shouting?”

“Where is she?” His voice was sharp, impatient. “Where is she?”

“She’s upstairs,” his grandmother replied, worried. “Donghae, calm down—”

“Upstairs,” he repeated flatly, already moving. “I don’t have time for this right now, don't overstep tonight!!”

He stormed up the stairs, each step pounding like a drum, memory of the bar and Min‐sik’s words fueling the storm inside him.

Her room was quiet. Books scattered, bed unmade, phone forgotten. She looked... careless, almost indifferent. She didn’t notice him at first. Donghae paused at the doorway, chest heaving, eyes burning with disbelief.

The door slammed behind him. He twisted the lock and stepped inside. Fists clenched.

“So this is what you’ve been doing?” he snapped. “Huh? Acting innocent like nothing happened?”

He grabbed her off the bed by the shoulders, shoving her roughly. She stumbled, hit the wall with a soft thud. Donghae didn’t flinch.

“You characterless—attention-whore—this is what you do, huh?!” he barked, voice low and vicious. “Always trying to get me to notice you! Always! And now this? Using Hyunwoo to make me care?”

He shook her. Harder. His breath came in ragged bursts. “Do you even think?! Or are you just some pathetic little sister who can’t exist without drama?!”

Another push, another slam against the wall. She crumpled slightly under his rage, but he didn’t stop. “Just because I don’t babysit you anymore, you think you can pull shit like this?! Sleeping with my friend just so I’ll look at you?!”

Another shove. She barely stayed upright.

“You’ve always been like this,” he continued, voice rising. “Doing anything you can to be noticed. Crying, acting fragile, causing problems—this is just another one of your tricks.”

The room was heavy with dust and tension. He grabbed her shoulders again, shaking her like he needed her to feel the weight of what she had done. “Answer me! 왜 그렇게 했어?! Answer me, now!” Why did you do that?

From outside the room, his grandmother’s voice trembled. “Donghae... open the door. Please.”

He didn’t turn around.

“할머니, 지금 끼어들지 마.” Grandma, don’t interfere right now.

He looked back at her, eyes dark, burning.

“왜 그렇게 했어?” he demanded. Why did you do it?

His voice cracked with fury, not hurt. “Why, huh? Say it. Tell me why you ruined everything.” his fist slammed just a brush away from her head, into the wall.